According to press reports from several Japanese sources (such as Hurray! Japan AND Nikkan Sportsnoticed by Machine), Konami has beefed up LA Dodgers outfielder Shohei Ohtani for the upcoming baseball game in response to his incredible performances this season.
The 30-year-old pitcher and designated hitter is already considered one of the best in the game. Few players have pitched and batted as well as he has, and while Ohtani hasn’t pitched this year as he recovers from an elbow injury, he did set a recent record by becoming the first MLB player to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season. He now has 53 home runs and 55 stolen bases, with games still to go.
As a result of his performance, Konami has reportedly raised the rating of Ohtani’s special base-stealing skill from “C” to “A” in Professional Baseball Spirits 2024-2025, a regional baseball game set to release in Japan this October.
According to Sankei Digital Socket On the backJapanese baseball fans have been playing along with the news on social media, claiming that reality is outpacing the game’s creators and that putting Ohtani’s (sometimes referred to as a true “player creator”) real-life skills into the game is tantamount to using hacks to cheat.
The LA Dodgers are atop the National League West heading into this year’s playoffs, which begin in October. I’m also a little disappointed that I won’t be able to play in the 2024-2025 Professional Baseball Spirits, which is the first I’ve heard of it — it looks pretty nippy. You can check it out Steam page if you exploit a VPN to pretend you are in Japan, assuming you are not actually there.
